Ukraine’s Zelensky publishes income as part of transparency drive

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks at a press conference after bilateral talks with the Swiss delegation, on Monday, January 15, 2024, in Kehrsatz near Bern, Switzerland. Keystone/Alessandro Della Valle/Pool via REUTERS/files

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made public his income over a two-year period on Sunday as part of a drive to promote transparency and root out endemic corruption.

In a post on the presidential website, Zelensky noted that his income had declined in 2021 and further in 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine at the end of February. It was the first time he publicly declared his income.

In 2021, the year before the invasion, Zelensky and his family reported income of 10.8 million hryvnias ($286,168), down 12 million hryvnias from the previous year. The 2021 figure included income from the sale of $142,000 of government bonds.

In 2022, the Zelensky family’s income fell further to 3.7 million hryvnias as he earned less rental income from real estate he owned because of the outbreak of the war.

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Zelensky has called for public officials to disclose their incomes as part of efforts to increase transparency and eliminate corruption as Ukraine tries to meet the stringent requirements for its bid to join the European Union.

Western allies providing weaponry and financial assistance as well as international bodies like the International Monetary Fund have also sought assurances on efforts to eliminate corruption.

Ukraine’s National Agency on Corruption Prevention, one of several bodies devoted to exposing and eliminating graft, last month reopened to public scrutiny a register on declared income.

($1 = 37.7400 hryvnias)